


Progenitor's Plaything

by IzziBlizzi



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Amnesia, Gen, Pre-Timeskip | Academy Phase (Fire Emblem: Three Houses), Time Loop
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-23
Updated: 2020-02-27
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:55:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,645
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22857310
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IzziBlizzi/pseuds/IzziBlizzi
Summary: A young girl wakes in a quiet cabin on an early Fodlan morning. She's not sure who she is, where she is, and what she's doing, but a rude awakening is in store for the hero-to-be, and she has no idea what the Goddess has in store for her.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 15





	1. An Inevitable Encounter

**Author's Note:**

> My first piece of fanfiction since like, middle school? I just like Fire Emblem that much, i suppose  
> All route spoilers ahead!  
> Thanks to my friends Alpaca, Kyubey and Katrina for proofreading and formatting for me ^^

“He’s gone now, Mother.”

  
Byleth awoke with a start, shooting up in her bed, sweat streaming down her face. She sat there, panting and wiping the sweat from her face, trying to recall the dream that had just shocked her awake. Only vague pieces drifted in her sleep-addled mind, armies clashing on a field of old, a green-haired warrior striking down a despised nemesis, and another, younger green haired girl sitting alone a solemn stone throne. She tried to piece together what exactly had happened, but her thoughts were cut short by the motion of the door in front of her.

“Hey, time to wake up.”

A man stood in Byleth’s door frame. He looked older, maybe in his mid fifties, with a short, semi-spiked hair cut, and a face littered with battle scars, one notably directly under his left eye. His brown beard rounded out his sharp, stern face, giving him a noble, stoic look. Byleth could only just make out his face in the early morning light.

“Were you having that dream again?” the man asked in a gruff but concerned tone of voice. 

Byleth racked her brain for a moment.  _ Again _ , she repeated in her head. Had she had this dream before? Had she had this dream in front of this man before.

A stranger question then appeared in her head.

Who was this man? She had no clue who the man was, or where she was currently laying.

She didn’t even know her own name. However, she didn’t have much time to dwell on the fact that her memories were seemingly absent, as the older looking man stood over her, asking for an answer with a concerned look on his face.

“I was..” she started, her own voice startling her. She really sounded like that? 

“I was dreaming about a war..” she said slowly. 

The man shook his head, the concern melting from his face as he began. “Massive armies clashing on a vast field, right? There hasn’t been a battle like that in over three centuries…” The man began to lecture Byleth on the life of a mercenary, but Byleth simply couldn’t listen. This man clearly had a good deal of concern for Byleth herself, so much so to dive into the various dreams she had. But who exactly was he? Who was  _ she _ ? Seemingly finished with his lecture, Byleth nodded in agreement, hoping that whatever he had said required an affirmative response.

“Ok, time to get moving. Our next job’s in the Kingdom.” he said. Byleth slightly tilted her head in confusion. “I told you before, it’s far from here, so we’ll need to leave at dawn.”

The Kingdom? Where was that? Where were they now? “Oh, right..” is all Byleth could muster, eliciting a frown from the man as she stood up, out of her bed. A moving shadow outside the small cabin caught the man’s attention. Standing now, Byleth could get a better look at the man who had come to wake her. He was tall, quite a bit taller than her, and he wore a suit of armour, covered mostly by a bright orange surcoat. The armour had scratches and dents on every square inch, and the surcoat was clearly years old, as the patches and various belts holding it together informed Byleth. This man was clearly a veteran of some war, possibly even the head of an army, Byleth gathered. Either way, he was certainly experienced in combat of some sort. 

“Hm?” the man began, catching Byleth’s attention. He groaned, and continued “Good grief, everyone is already waiting outside for us.” As he finished, Byleth turned her head towards the exit door, another man barged in. He was also suited in armour, and he looked a good deal younger than the man who had woke her.

“Jeralt!” the man said between pants, clearly out of breath. “Sir! Sorry to barge in, but your presence is needed!”

_ Jeralt! His name is Jeralt! _ Byleth patted herself on the back for gaining that piece of information. She was, however, quickly disappointed that the name brought back no associated memories, and that, as far as she can recall, she’d never met anyone named Jeralt in the entire life.

“What’s happened?” Jeralt asked with an assertive tone. The soldier merely gestured outside, and Jeralt quickly strode out to meet the threat. Byleth quickly scrambled to follow him, grabbing the nearest blunt implement for her own safety. Luckily enough for her, it was a sword, and judging by the reactions of those around her, probably an unused one.

When Byleth reached the outside of the small cabin, she was surprised to see three younger faces staring back at her.

“Please forgive our intrusion,” spoke the leftmost figure in a sophisticated, formal tone, “We wouldn’t bother you were the situation not dire.” Byleth scanned him as he spoke. He wore a black and gold military uniform, accentuated by a medal pinning an azure capelet to his shoulder, as well as a blue strap securing a scabbard to his left hip. The two splashes of colour, matching with his blonde hair and pale skin gave the man an artic, frigid look, as well as an air of royalty. This man could very well  _ be _ royalty, Byleth had no way of knowing.

“What do a bunch of kids like you want at this hour?” Jeralt asked, skeptically.

“We’re being pursued by a group of bandits. I can only hope that you will be so kind as to lend your support.” replied the blonde one. He spoke in a kind, soft, formal way that made it clear he was very sorry for dragging others into his mess. Byleth sensed a kind soul, one who was refined and well-mannered. A good friend, perhaps.

“Bandits?” Jeralt asked, surprised, “Here?”

“It’s true,” spoke the rightmost girl, her voice calm but stern, “They attacked us while we were at rest in our camp.” Byleth’s eyes shifted over to her. She was wearing a black military uniform, similar in style to the blonde boy’s but instead adorned with gold trimmings, an intricate lace decoration in the center. The uniform cut off much earlier than the other one. Ending instead in black shorts that turned into red leggings, that ended with black heels. Similarly, the girl wore a crimson capelet over her shoulder that was draped over her left side. Long, snow-white hair fell behind her capelet, and she spoke with a self-confident air. Maybe she was royalty, too.

“We’ve been separated from our companions and we’re outnumbered. They’re after our lives…not to mention our gold.” cut in the boy in the middle. Byleth again shifted her gaze to him, and studied him just as closely. A tan boy with messy brown hair, he also wore a military uniform, but his extended into a robe that ran down past his knees, stopping only to show off his black boots. His uniform’s only colour was the gold trim that ran down the entire uniform, as well as another matching capelet, this time a verdant golden, draped over his left shoulder, just like the others. His emerald eyes held a sense of mischief, as well as genuine concern. Were these three all royalty?

Jeralt’s eyes widened as they spoke. “I’m impressed you’re staying so calm considering the situation. I…” He paused, scanning the three just as Byleth had. Byleth noticed his eyes particularly fixed on their uniforms, the same as Byleth. “Wait...those uniforms..”

  
The same man who had barged in on Byleth and Jeralt before came sprinting up to the small group. “Bandits spotted outside the village!” he exclaimed, collapsing at their feet. “Damn, there are a lot of them.” he explained between gasps of air.

Jeralt sighed, and looked towards the three who had approached them. “I guess they followed you all the way here. We can’t abandon this village now.” He then turned to Byleth, his expression shifting from bewildered to meditative.

“Come on, let’s move. I hope you’re ready.” he said, patting Byleth on her back before striding out behind the house.

“Ready for what, Jeralt?”

Jeralt stopped in his tracks, and slowly spun around.    
“What else, kid? We’re going to have to stop those bandits from getting into the village. Grab those three, they’ll probably know how to fight well enough to help us out of this mess. And don’t call me Jeralt. That’s just weird, kid.”

  
Byleth mentally flinched. That was a bad move, adding his name at the end of the sentence. Clearly, he was someone in some sort of authority position over her. A superior? A boss, maybe? Maybe he was someone just as important as the other three. Maybe her father? An older brother? Questions flooded Byleth’s mind, but she quickly snapped back to reality as she ran over to the 3 nobles.

“Do you know how to fight?” Byleth asked, mechanically.

“Of course,” piped up the blonde boy. “Do you require our assistance in repelling the bandits?”

“No sweat! Now that we have numbers on our side, they should be no match for His and Her Highness!” replied the tan boy, much to the dismay of the blonde one.

“Do not underestimate the enemy, Claude. That’s how you end up a casualty.” spoke the girl in a terse tone. A new name for her small but growing collection, Byleth turned to Claude. She was sure from the way they spoke that she didn’t know these three, or they at least didn’t know her.

Claude seemed to fit the mischievous boy as a name, Byleth noted.

  
“Hey, you don’t have to worry about me, Princess Hresvelg. I can handle a bow just as well as you can handle a-”

  
“Enough bickering!” exclaimed the blonde boy. “This kind woman and her companions are risking their lives to help us! The least we can do is assist her!”

“Right, right, my humblest apologies to Prince Dimitri Alexandre von Blaiddyd, heir to the Kingdom of Faerghus, his royal ascendancy.” Claude spat back with a small, mocking bow.

“I agree with Dimitri, Claude. Let’s put our training to use, shall we?” said the girl, who solemnly marched in the direction of Jeralt, giving Byleth a cursory and critical look as she passed.

“Forgive Edelgard, miss, she’s always like this, isn’t she, Your Highness?” Claude said with the same mocking tone as he passed Byleth, breaking into a jog to catch up.

“She...I admit, she can be quite..cold, sometimes. Apologies, ma’am, for both of my colleagues' behavior. They’re both unbecoming of royalty.. Come, let us strike down the bandits.” Dimitri said, before he sprinted to catch up to the group.

“What a unique set of characters..” spoke a girl’s voice, seemingly directly next to her.

Quickly, Byleth spun around to face the unknown speaker, only to be met with the empty, quiet village at dawn. As much as she searched the horizon, Byleth could not spot the girl who had just spoken. Where did that come from? Did she imagine that?

“C’mon, kid! The rich brats are all up here, ready to fight, but my mercenary daughter is watching the sunrise?” barked Jeralt from a distance.

His..His daughter?

Byleth stood, frozen, basking in the rising sun.

“C’mon, Byleth, I need someone to guide the brats, I’ll be busy with commanding my main force against the one’s attacking the villagers. You’ll need to attack the leadership to rout them, they’re probably hiding back in the forest near the village.”

Byleth?

“Is..is Byleth my name?” she stuttered as Jeralt came into view, blocking the morning sun rays assault her vision.

“What? Of course it is, kid, your mother picked it out herself. Are you feeling alright? Is that dream still on your mind? I told you, the battlefield is no place for idle thoughts.”

“Yes, I’m sorry, That dream’s still just...weighing on me, that’s all, father.” Byleth said, unbelieving the words leaving her mouth.

She was very lost, unsure of the world and people around her. She gripped the sword in her hand tighter, and felt an odd sort of comfort in the feeling of preparing for battle.

“Don’t tough it out if you aren’t feeling well, kid. You can sit out if you’re not up for it-”   
  


“No, I’ll fight. You want me to lead those kids, right?”

Jeralt nodded, and Byleth quickly set off to catch up to the three.

Dimitri, Edelgard, Claude. Was Byleth a better fighter than these three? She was a mercenary, as Jeralt said, right?

As she caught up to the three at the head of the forest, she tightened her grip on her sword, and swiftly walked past them.

She was going to find out.


	2. The Progenitor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Byleth, still unsure of where she is and who exactly she is, heads into battle against a group of bandits with the three lords and meets a familiar girl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to Alpaca again for proofreading! ^^

The brisk Fodlan morning was indistinguishable from the chill of night. The only way Byleth could tell it was morning was the sun beginning to peek over the horizon, illuminating the young faces around her. A white haired, red clad girl, a gentlemanly blonde boy, and a mischievous boy donned in yellow.

“So? Our plan, miss...Ah, I didn’t catch your name.” Claude says with a slight smile.

“B..Byleth, It’s..uh, Byleth.” Byleth stutters, trying to put together a sense of self.

“Ah, Byleth! Beautiful name may I add!” Claude says with a quick wink. “So, Byleth, Our plan?”

Right, She was the mercenary among them. She’d be expected to make a plan. She scanned the edge of the forest for enemies, and, to her surprise, found several bandits among the treeline, seemingly unaware of the assault that was riding out to meet them. Jeralt had said she’d have to take down the leader in the forest in order to send them packing. There was no way to tell from here who was and wasn’t a leader, so, they’d had to take down every bandit hiding in the forest.

“Miss Byleth?” said Dimitri, startling her back to reality. “Did you come up with something?”

She shook her head, and rubbed her eyes slightly. “Yes, I have. We’re going to take up position inside the edge of the forest there,” she said, pointing directly ahead, “and use that position to scout the enemies numbers and find their leader. There’s a cliff on the other side of the brush, so if we don’t find anyone hiding within, the cliff would make an advantageous point to scout out the enemy.”

“Excellent plan, Byleth.” Edelgard remarked with a smile.

“Agreed. Who shall lead the charge?” inquired Dimitri. Before anyone could respond, Byleth gripped her sword tightly and charged ahead, quickly sprinting up towards the treeline.

“I guess she’s elected herself.” Claude said, before the three of them took after her, huddling behind her as she crouched on the outskirts of the grove. Byleth scanned through the treeline. Dead ahead, she spotted three figures gathered at what looked like a crude watchtower, one guarding the ladder up and two others huddled around a parchment, maybe a map. Her heart skipped a beat when she caught a glimpse of someone inside the lookout post. An enemy? Had they seen their advance?

“When I say, Claude, You need to take out the one in the watchtower. Dimitri, Edelgard, take the bandit closer to the ladder. I’ll take the other two.”

“Two? By yourself?” questioned Edelgard. Byleth simply nodded by a response, and Edelgard’s look of bemusement slowly softened into one of confidence. “I understand.” she replied, gripping her axe tighter. Byleth felt her breathing grow shallow, and closed her eyes for only a moment. Focus, she told herself, as she took a sharp, deep breath. She opened her eyes and began with a yell.

“Now, Claude! Now, Dimitri, Edelgard, Let’s go!”

“On it!” Claude yelled back as he notched and arrow with a flare, and sent it flying towards the direction of the watchtower. Byleth took little time to make sure the arrow hit, trusting in Claude’s confidence as she charged ahead, catching the two bandits by surprise. Before either could react, and before Byleth could consciously think about her actions, she swung her sword forward, feeling it carve through the armour of the stunned bandit and into his chest. As he staggered back, she followed up with a single thrust into his chest, swiftly plunging her sword in and out. Before the bandit’s ally could react, she slashed at his legs, electing a cry of pain, and a second bandit at her feet. Turning to see her allies’ progress, an arrow whizzed past Byleth and sunk into the bandit she had knocked over, causing her to stumble momentarily.

“Oh! Jeez, almost hit ya!” called Claude, who raised a hand in apology. Byleth observed the arrow had struck the bandit directly in his heart: an excellent shot. She gazed up towards the tower to find the bandit, slumped over the edge of the observation deck. “I took a calculated risk, and it worked out, so no harm no foul!” Byleth simply shook her head in response, and peered over towards the other two. Edelgard and Dimitri had advanced close enough to strike, and Dimitri took the first swing, using his entire body to send his spear forward as fast and as far as possible. The bandit narrowly dodged, and tried to counterattack with a broad swing, but he also narrowly missed the collapsed prince. Edelgard, taking the opportunity, drove her axe directly into the bandits back, causing him to shriek in pain before falling over limp on the downed boy, who threw the bandit off him, stabbing him with his spear before fully standing up. Everyone sat, catching their breath for a moment.

“Is everyone alright?” Dimitri called out between pants.

“I’m unharmed.” replied Edelgard.

“I’m as right as rain. So’s Miss Mercenary. Took two of ‘em without even a chance for them to attack.”

“Indeed. I’m impressed by your fighting skills.” said Edelgard.

“Thank you. We are in your debt. It wouldn’t do for us to fall in a place like this.” said Dimitri

“Agreed. It’s because of you guys that I’m not dead right now. The gods of fortune must be smiling on me!” said Calude.

“You have a strange aura about you...” remarked Edelgard.

“You’ve certainly caught their attention, haven’t you?” remarked a young girl’s voice. The same one as earlier, at least she was pretty sure. Byleth spun around, sword ready to strike down a foe, only to find the bodies of the two slain bandits at her feet.

“Uh, just, spinning in place in response, miss?” Claude asked.

“..I thought, uh, I heard someone. Apologies.” Byleth replied, shaking her head. “We’ve not killed their leader.”

“How do you figure?” asked Edelgard. In response, Byleth simply pointed up towards the cliff.

“MERCENARIES?! In the village? Whatever, guess we’ll deal with ‘em too. Get ‘em, boys!” yelled a scruffy, bearded bandit. Quickly, several men, 4 as far as she could tell, jumped over the cliffside, obviously waiting in ambush for this exact situation.

“An ambush! Byleth, what shall we do?” asked Dimitri, who had finally retrieved his lance from the chest of the bandit who had accosted him.

“Everyone, on me!” she yelled, and the three young warriors quickly complied, gathering behind her. “On my mark, we charge for the big one, got it?” The only response was several nods, which was all she needed. She waited for the 4 bandits to charge closer, closer towards the forest. Closer, closer they ran, and tighter, tighter she gripped her sword.  
“Now!”

They took off in unison towards their foe, and their voices, including, to her own surprise, Byleth’s, all raised in a war cry. Claude fired an arrow forward as they ran, missing narrowly, which was followed up by several swings from Edelgard’s axe and Dimitri’s lance., striking down the group of bandits in a flurry of blows. This left Byleth alone, charging towards the barbarian standing atop the hill. Her maneuver a success, Byleth met the man at the top of the hill.

“Hey! You with the blank stare! Outta my way!” he snarled, brandishing a hand axe. He charged at her as she raised her sword to defend herself. For a moment, something at the back of her mind commanded her to dodge backwards, and she complied, watching as the axe’s blade narrowly missed making contact with her stomach. Thinking quickly, she swung her blade at the bandit, slashing his leg, before throwing a haymaker directly toward his stunned face, connecting and sending the large man staggering backwards. As he regained his balance, he growled in anger, and began charging again, this time bleeding from the leg as he yelled. Byleth tried repeating her successful move, but the large man anticipated, and kept sprinting, charging directly into Byleth and sending her tumbling down the hill. Her sword escaping her grasp as she rolled, Byleth came to a painful stop at the foot of the hill, where she slammed her head into the cold, morning grass. Groaning in pain, Byleth righted her body, sitting up and tried to ease the now throbbing pain and reeling dizziness that controlled her vision, only to fall backward, landing on the dirt with a thud. A familiar, brutish screaming caught her attention, and she attempted to sit back up to get a view of the screaming. She could only attempt to sit up as she saw three bandits chasing toward her, axes raised, ready to cut her down.

Before they could connect, 3-red clad women stepped out in front of the bandit, catching their axe with hers.

Byleth shook her head, the 3 spinning images finally coalescing into one. Edelgard stood above the prone mercenary, having knocked the ruffian off his feet. She turned towards Byleth, and extended a gloved hand.

“I thought you were a mercenary.” she said with a slight smile. Byleth grabbed her hand and pulled herself up, slowly, making sure to go easy on herself.

“I am, I’m just, a little dazed this morning. It’s not every day that royalty wakes you up and makes you fight bandits to protect them”

“Trust me, this isn’t a normal morning for me either.” she said, shifting where she stood, letting her arms fall by her side.

Byleth caught a glimpse behind Edelgard of a figure standing up.

“Thank you, again, Byleth, for your-”

“Edelgard, Watch out!” Byleth yelled, pushing the princess out of the path of the now-charging bandit. She could only watch in horror as he swung downwards, the axe clearly going to cleave her in two. She closed her eyes, and braced herself for impact.

But it didn’t.

She braced more. 

Then she realized the air around her had gotten very, very cold. She opened her eyes to find absolutely nothing at all, a black void tinted with a greenish hue standing before her.

“Honestly! What are you accomplishing with that little stunt?! It’s like you’re trying to get me killed, you fool!” said a familiar, young voice.

Byleth turned around, slowly, to find herself staring at a large, stone throne, floating in the middle of the black-green void, with a large set of stairs floating up to it. The throne, fit for a giant, was only occupied by a small girl with long, tangled green hair. She stood, not even an eighth of the throne’s height, at the top of the stairs, scowling at Byleth. The scowl slowly fades into a soft smile, as she sits down on the throne.

“Well, it’s fine. After all if you don’t know the value of your own life you’re not going to protect it very well are you? Course not.”

“Who are you? W-where am I?” Byleth stuttered, the all-encompassing cold and darkness of the void around her starting to get to her.

“You can call me Sothis…but I’m also known as ‘The Beginning’.”

“The..The Beginning? Am I dead?”

“No, fool! Very narrowly, you have avoided death for the time being! Yes..some once called me The Beginning...but who once called me that?”

“You don’t know?” Byleth asked.

“I was not able to recall my name…until just now. And just like that, it came to me. How odd.”

Byleth frowned. At least she wasn’t the only one with memory loss.

“That look on your face...Did you think of me a child who forgot her own name?! Phooey! Some child I am, saving your life and all!”

“T..thank you, Sothis.”

“Hmph, was that so hard, a bit of respect?”

“How have you saved me, may I ask?” asked Byleth, shifting her tone to one of more respect, as the child before her seemed to demand.

“I have stalled the flow of time, for now. To think, you threw yourself in front of an axe to save that girl. What a waste!”

“What will happen when time resumes.”

“Well, the axe will continue towards your weak, mortal body and rend you in two.”

Byleth swallowed. So, this was the realm of the dead. She was looking at the Goddess of Death. Ironic, she thought that she had no memories of her life, but it had already come to an end.

“How rude, to force my hand like this, Byleth! Whatever shall i do..” the child said, tapping her chin slowly, looking to Byleth as if to hear any suggestion she had in mind.

“You stopped time already..”

“Correct...Somehow, I’ve stopped time, and stopped the axe from killing you...”

“Then, can you reverse it?”

“Hm...” Sothis said, standing from her seat, extending her arm out slowly. A bright light flashed from her hand, and some sort of rune, taking on the shape of a clock, floated distantly from it. “Yes, it is possible...I can turn back time, but only a few seconds. You must make use of that. Understood?”

“Yes, Sothis.”

“Hmph. Do not waste this gift. Yes, you who bares the Flames Within...go forth and seek your destiny, Drift through Time’s Flow and find the answers you seek.”

“Wait do y-” Byleth’s voice cut off when the void folded in on itself, disappearing in a searing white light.

Suddenly, she was back, at the bottom of the hill, Being lifted up by Edelgard.

“I thought you were a mercenary.”

“W...Well, let’s just say it’s not a normal morning for either of us, Princess.”

“True, very true. Are you-”

“Turn around and step aside.” Byleth said, grabbing her sword from the ground.

“What?” Edelgard said, turning around to face the charging bandit. Byleth quickly stepped forward, and began an upward swing to counter the downward one. Her sword met his axe, causing it to fly out of his hand. Shocked, the bandit attempted to reverse direction, and skid on the dirt, causing himself to tumble backward, flying to the ground. Byleth breathed a sigh of relief, kicking his axe far from his body. 

“Hey! Princess, and uh, Byleth!” Claude called out from a distance, sprinting to catch up. Dimitri followed close behind, and the four re-united, panting and sharing a moment of shared victory.

“The Knights of Seiros are here! We'll cut you down for terrorizing our students!” yelled a confident, heroic voice in the distance. The bandit who had attacked Byleth and a couple of other stragglers quickly began to run away as a few knights on horseback, including Jeralt, approached.

“Good parry, kid, just like I taught you!” said Jeralt, surprising Byleth with a hefty pat on her back.

“The thieves are running away. Go after them.” commanded a knight in bright white armour. “The students seem to be unharmed. And... who's this?”

“Oh, Goddess, why him..?”

Byleth relaxed her stance and looked towards the rising sun. She’d figured out a few things: She was damn good at commanding, and damn good at fighting. Unfortunately, that was about all she found out. And she had plenty of new questions.


End file.
